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So if living as if there is no God doesn't mean living immorally, what does it mean?

Without threat of eternal damnation, it means that we must take seriously the consequences of negative behaviors during our time on earth.Without threat of eternal rewards, it means we must live life to the fullest, appreciating the beauty, love, and kindness that we experience now, and share it with others.Without a God to make the rules, it means we must pay attention to our rules, create our own moral codes as individuals and a society and justify our behaviors as moral to the larger community. With this as the only world we will know, it means that we must take care of it, and make ensure that our planet is livable for generations to come.Without a God's love and support, it means we must love and support one another.Without a God to blame for negative things happening, it means we must work to make a world where people are cared for in the best way possible.Without a God to thank for ou…

A Christian colleague ran across the term "Practical Atheist" recently and brought it to a group I'm in for definition and discussion. I wasn't familiar with it, and as probably the only thing close to an Atheist in the group (for the record, I call myself an Agnostic), offered up that it might be about a distinction between declared Atheists and default atheists (those who have not made a sort of declaration of atheism, but have no belief in God). Other Christian colleagues in the group went with a definition of those people who might profess a belief in Christ, but live a Godless lifestyle. Turns out, it seems they were right according to some definitions. And that makes sense, because it's not a term that would make sense within the Atheist community, but makes sense in the Christian community. And no term is likelier to drive Atheists hopping mad, now that I understand it better.

The Rev. Dr. Cynthia L. Landrum is a Unitarian Universalist minister, artist, writer, parent, and justice advocate. The opinions expressed here are solely her own, and do not represent the views of the church or any other organization she serves.